Victor Matfield has admitted he is feeling uneasy ahead of the Springboks’ Nations Championship opener against England at Ellis Park on Saturday.
Despite the Boks sitting atop the world rankings and England arriving in Johannesburg on the back of a poor run of results, Matfield believes there are several reasons not to underestimate Steve Borthwick’s side.
“I’m nervous this weekend, I don’t know why. We’ve had the one Barbarians game, haven’t really been tested,” the former Bok lock said on the Rugby Rivals podcast.
“Our guys come from all over the world, get together. It’s the first game of the season. I think the expectation is so high of the Springboks team that we’re probably starting to feel like what New Zealand feel like, where everyone expects you to win every game.
“Firstly, it will be interesting to see Rassie going with the old guard.”
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Matfield expects a fierce battle up front, particularly with England’s scrum having earned widespread praise.
“There is a lot of talk about England having the strongest scrum in world rugby, so there’s a nice little challenge for the South African pack,” he said with a smile.
“I’m looking forward to seeing guys like Thomas du Toit and Ox Nché back together with Malcolm Marx.
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“It’s a first outing and the first thing, and Rassie’s said it as well, is we just want to win, he doesn’t care about bonus points.
“From there, what style? What are we going to see? Is there something new coming out? Will we be more expansive? Will we go back to the kicking game?”
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Matfield also expects England flank Henry Pollock to be a marked man.
“Rassie has been very complimentary of Pollock, but I think the players want to get stuck into that guy,” he said.
Photo: Warren Little/Getty Images
The post England make Matfield nervous appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Victor Matfield has admitted he is feeling uneasy ahead of the Springboks’ Nations Championship opener against England at Ellis Park on Saturday.
The post England make Matfield nervous appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Read More
